Wisconsin Banking Rates and News

BB&T has brought back its $125 checking account promotion. Like the one last year, you can qualify for the bonus without direct deposit. That’s rare these days. The one downside remains the same. All of BB&T's checking accounts have potential monthly service fees. So if you open the checking account for the bonus, you have to make sure to avoid the fees.

To qualify for the $125 bonus, customers must open a BB&T checking account and either 1) use online bill pay for 3 bill payments with a minimum payment of...

Fifth Third Bank has a new checking account promotion. They’ll give $150 to Stand Up To Cancer and $150 to you when you open a new checking account with direct deposit and make three online bill payments. The account must be opened by March 31, 2014. The direct deposit and the three online bill payments must be completed within 90 days of account opening to qualify for the bonus. Bonus will be deposited into the new checking account within 6 weeks of completing requirements. The full details of this offer...

Fifth Third Bank has come out with some new CD specials. There are two changes from Fifth Third’s CD promotions from last fall. For most of Fifth Third’s market area, the bank is offering a 1.75% APY 5-year CD. For the Florida market, this long-term CD promotion is a 2.00% APY 6-year CD. The other CD promotions are the same as last fall with a 1.50% APY 4-year CD, a 1.25% APY 38-month CD and a 1.00% APY 28-month CD. Minimum deposit is $5,000, and a new or existing checking...

We’re now seeing some large banks raising their long-term CD rates. The latest is Fifth Third Bank which is offering a special 4-year CD with a 1.50% APY. You can get a higher 4-year CD rate at a few internet banks and credit unions, but this 1.50% APY is competitive especially for large banks. There are also shorter-term CD specials: a 1.25% APY 38-month CD and a 1.00% APY 28-month CD. Minimum deposit is $5,000, and a new or existing checking account is required. These rates are listed in Fifth...

Regions Bank is again advertising a checking account promotion in which you can earn $125. This is another big bank that lacks free checking so you'll have to be careful to avoid monthly fees. The offer requires a new customer open a LifeGreen Checking Account online with the promo code 125, have at least $500 in total direct deposits and at least 10 Visa check card purchases in the first 60 days. Offer is scheduled to end on 4/7/2013. The offer is listed in this Region's promotion page.

There's no mention...

It has been awhile since I reviewed a new reward checking account. Most new reward checking accounts haven't been worthy of a blog post due to their disappointing low rates and/or balance caps. This one at Community Financial Services Bank (CFSB) is good enough to make it worthy of a blog post. CFSB's reward checking account isn't really a new account. We have been tracking its rates since 2010. However, the reward checking account name has recently changed from free eRewards Checking account to Kasasa Cash. The bank has also...

Just two weeks ago I posted on a BB&T $100 checking account bonus. Now it's offering a $125 bonus with the same requirements. The nice aspect of this bonus is that you can qualify for it without direct deposit. The downside is that BB&T's checking accounts have potential monthly service fees. So if you open the checking account for the bonus, you have to make sure to avoid the fees.

To qualify for the $125 bonus, customers must open a BB&T checking account and set-up and receive 2 direct deposits of...

BB&T is again offering a $100 bonus for opening a checking account and performing some additional activities. Just like most large banks, BB&T's checking accounts have potential monthly service fees. So if you open the checking account for the bonus, you have to make sure to avoid the fees.

To qualify for the $100 bonus, customers must open a BB&T checking account and set-up and receive 2 direct deposits of at least $100 OR make 3 online bill payments of at least $25. The offer is scheduled to end on 3/1/2013....

If you haven't been turned off by what Fort Knox Federal Credit Union did in 2011, you may want to consider its current CD specials. These include a 1.50% APY 23-month CD, a 1.20% APY 14-month CD and a 1.00% APY 6-month CD. Minimum deposit is $500. These rates are listed in the credit union's Term Share Certificate Rates page as of 12/28/2012.

Even though Fort Knox FCU makes it easy for anyone in the nation to join, not everyone can qualify for these special CDs. Only long-time members or residents...

BrandBank has started a checking account promotion which is guaranteeing a 1.07% APY through June 30, 2013. A minimum balance of $50,000 is required. The rates are much lower for smaller balances (0.25% for $10K to $50K and 0.10% for under $10K). There's also another requirement. One of the following criteria must be met within 60 days of account opening: 1) sign up for recurring Direct Deposit on this account; 2) enroll in Brand Bill Pay; or 3) open a CD with at least $25,000 in new money not currently...

Knoxville TVA Employees Credit Union is offering a competitive certificate special. There are actually two specials, but I only consider the longer-term CD rate as competitive. That's a 1.60% APY 34-month CD. The shorter term CD special only has a 0.85% APY for a 17-month term. Minimum deposit is $5,000. These rates are listed in the credit union's specials page as of 9/12/2012.

Based on the name of the credit union, it might appear that membership is limited to just employee groups. However, membership is also open to many other people....

Earlier this month I reported on BancVue's latest campaign in promoting Kasasa. In its free gas promotion, it highlighted several banks and credit unions offering Kasasa accounts. Some of these were banks that have just have recently launched Kasasa accounts. One of these is Sycamore Bank which has a Kasasa Cash account and a Kasasa Saver account. Like most new Kasasa accounts, the balance cap is a little disappointing. Nevertheless, the interest rate is high enough to make it noteworthy. Below are the rates, features and requirements of these accounts...